By Thea Jarvis

Close to 2,000 people massed in the amphitheater of Central City Park in Atlanta last Saturday to mark the deaths of 15 million children struck down by abortion.

Parents with babies in backpacks and strollers, priests, Religious and ministers, pre-schoolers and young adults, grandparents and teenagers, many wearing or holding red roses and carnations, signs and banners, came together for a prayer service in memory of those who have died since the Supreme Court made abortion legal in the United States 10 years ago.

The service focused in particular on 14 “live births” – babies who survived the abortion procedure – which occurred over a three-year period at Midtown Hospital, an abortion facility in Atlanta.

An early morning rain gave way to welcome cloud cover as the service began with contemporary religious music presented by members of the Atlanta Christian Center.

“We are here to mourn the dead and give glory to God,” said Eric Peterson, a member of the memorial service planning committee who moderated the morning gathering, which included a silent march past Midtown Hospital on Ponce de Leon Avenue.

Space was at a premium as the crowd settled down on park seats and stood listening from the topmost reaches of the semicircle.

Dr. Francis Schaeffer, in Atlanta for a L’Abri Conference at Mount Vernon Christian Academy, delivered an address to the crowd following prayer and the reading of Scripture. Schaeffer, a philosopher, theologian and author, is internationally known for his pro-life work.

In his remarks, he noted that “abortion is a symptom of a generally lowered view of human life” which also leads to infanticide (the killing of children) and euthanasia (killing of the ill or aged).

“Life is an unbroken continuum,” Schaeffer said, referring to scientific studies which indicate that life begins at conception. Our society, however, promotes the idea that for the sake of convenience or the “supposed happiness” of some, the right of a human being to live may be forsaken.

“Now we are the barbarians,” he continued, pointing out the method by which handicapped infants are sometimes disposed of – passive starvation in a hospital nursery.

Further, Schaeffer stated, an unfavorable attitude toward the existence of “unwanted” elderly means “the aged will be increasingly in danger” if human life is not accepted as intrinsically valuable.

Our society, abetted by some in the medical and media communities has reached the conclusion that “there is such a thing as human life not worthy to be lived. What is being lost is humanness in all areas,” Dr. Schaeffer stated.

Such a lowered view of human life means a rejection of the existence of God because man is “made in His image,” he stressed. Noticing a young boy displaying a sign that read “created in God’s image,” Schaeffer stopped to bring the boy up to the podium for all to see, a gesture which brought a standing ovation from the crowd.

Dr. Schaeffer emphasized that the Judaeo-Christian ethic, which holds that God is the final reality, has always been “the basis of the freedoms we enjoy and the high view of human life generally held” in America. The fact that this ethic is no longer taught in our schools nor represented by the media, he said, leads to “a relativistic value system” which provides “no fixed basis for law” in the United States. He called for national repentance, especially on the part of the U.S. Supreme Court, which has authorized abortion in this country.

Archbishop Thomas Donnellan, who offered the concluding prayer, likewise referred to the responsibility of government to care for human life and happiness rather than allow the “silent holocaust” that has accompanied legalized abortion.

The archbishop joined the throng making the one and a half mile march down Peachtree Street to North Avenue, across Piedmont to Ponce de Leon Avenue and the site of Midtown Hospital.

Throughout the march, those walking three and four abreast in a protected traffic lane were solemn and peaceful. Young children who had sat patiently through the memorial service found rest on their fathers’ shoulders or in their mothers’ arms. Strollers carried sleepy babies who were seemingly non-plussed when a few pro-abortion sentiments were shouted from nearby cars or apartment windows. Uniformed policemen stopped traffic at all intersections so marchers could proceed safely to their dispersal point on Peachtree Street.

At Midtown Hospital, where a small group of staffers and pro-abortion supporters were gathered on the front lawn, no dialogue passed between marchers and onlookers. The pro-life group had been carefully instructed not to engage in conversation with or in any way provoke those who might not be in conformity with their views.

Approached by this Georgia Bulletin reporter, Ann Rose, a Midtown official, was noticeably annoyed. “I don’t think I want to talk to you,” she said curtly, adding that the reporter must leave the Midtown property immediately.

Other media representatives from the press, radio and television, however, were cordially received by Ms. Rose, who was available to them for photographs and comments.

The Georgia Bulletin has covered the “live birth” incidence at Midtown extensively and broke the story that such events had occurred at the hospital.

Following the march, Lloyd Gilcreast, a member of the Maranatha ministry at Georgia Tech who pickets Midtown each Saturday morning with others from his church, called the service and march “perfect, an answer to a prayer.”

“God more than blessed us,” he said, adding that the turnout “far exceeded what was expected.”

Anne Tolleson of Christian Action for Life, one of three groups which sponsored the pro-life activities, said she was “extraordinarily pleased with the turnout,” observing that “people have been waiting for the opportunity to give a visible expression to their inner convictions.”